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Graduate scheme sparks row

ALEX WHITE, junior minister for primary care, disagrees with James Reilly, the minister for health, that a controversial graduate scheme for 1,000 nurses should be expanded to other professions.

Last weekend, Reilly said that the scheme, which offers newly qualified nurses 80% of the pay of their colleagues, should be introduced for other healthcare staff. “Far from keeping this to nurses, I want to see this extended to physiotherapists, occupational therapists and others,” he said.

White said: “The graduate nurse initiative I would regard as very specific to a requirement in the area of nursing, because we have a heavy reliance on agency nursing and overtime. I’m not aware of any such proposal [to expand it to other professions]. We’re currently in talks for an extension of the Croke Park agreement and I think that provides an opportunity to look at the pay of all professions in the context of